Daily Wage Worker Waited Outside The Bank With His Wife’s Dead Body For Money To Perform Last Rites

It is a sad reality that many people have to deal with especially when you are coping with a loss of loved one and some uncontrollable sources make it more difficult to go through the situation.

The family members of a 62-year-old woman who died due to stomach cancer could not cremate her as they did not have any money to perform the last rites. The family members of the dead woman, Phoolmati Devi had gone to the bank to withdraw money on Monday.

The bank didn’t give them money as they did not have any more currency notes to disburse. Phoolmati’s husband 65-year-old Munni Lal, a daily wage worker sat outside the bank next to his wife’s body under a plastic tent in Noida on Tuesday.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Lal said that his wife was diagnosed with stomach cancer a few months ago. Early in the morning on Monday; he took her to Dharamshila hospital which referred them to another private hospital. Phoolamti passed away at 2 PM. He had to pay Rs 700 in cash for food, medicine and syringes. When he returned to his home in Sector 9 in the evening, he found that he had no money to pay for his wife’s last rites. He went to the branch of Bank of India in Sector 9, where his son has an account. His sons took a train from Gonda, UP to meet him. He stood at the bank for hours, but the managers told him that they had no money.

Even on Tuesday, Lal’s neighbour approached the bank, and they were told that they would receive the money at the bank in a while. After few hours, they went again, and the bank officials told them that they did not have cash. Eventually, he had to protest with her body outside the bank.

On being informed about this incident, the police reached the spot, and the sub-inspector in charge Dilip Singh Bisht of the Jhundpura police gave him Rs 2,000 for the cremation. A local politician also reached there after he came to know about the news and offered Rs 10,000 to the family. Even then, Munni Lal persisted that he wanted to withdraw the money, as reported by The Times of India.

Munni Lal said that his wife would not want him to use borrowed money for her cremation. The district administration gave the money to the bank, after which he withdrew Rs 15,000 from his son’s account, as reported by The Indian Express.

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An Army Colonel Is Changing Lives Of Thousand Of People From North-East Using White Bullets

Retiring after spending 32 years in the Indian Army, Col Chris Rego is helping change the destinies of hundreds of children in conflict-affected North East India through his “White Bullets” initiative. With this initiative, he hopes to bring peace and progress to communities across North East India.

Luminouswanted to bring out the Colonel’s story to the world to inspire and motivate others as it believes that education is a strong tool to empower women. It is supporting Col Rego’s cause through an initiative called #Luminaries – the brave people who stand up for causes like girl child education and make a difference in the society.

Col Rego’s journey started over a decade ago in Manipur when a tribal woman knocked on his door pleading for support for her daughter’s education. Touched by the woman’s story, Col Rego and his wife delved into their savings and arranged for the money for the girl’s education. Two years down the line, the woman returned, this time with a small pumpkin and a shawl that she had knitted, and all the money she had borrowed. Moved and realizing that their money could make lives rather than earn paltry interest, Col and Mrs. Rego embarked on a journey to arrange for sponsorship of many more underprivileged children.

Retiring from the Army, Col Rego took over as CEO of Sunbird Trust, a not-for-profit organization which he founded in 2014. The Trust now sponsor over 1,000 children in 21 locations acrossNorth East India. The centre of Sunbird Trust’s activities is at beautiful Ijeirong, Manipur.

Recognizing Col Chris’s immense work, Luminousacknowledged him as their first Luminary. Through this, they hope to bring more power to his elbow in the notable work he is doing. The Luminousteam travelled to remote Ijeirong village and installed solar products. These solar products will help in providing power to the entire campus 24/7 for the very first time.

The Logical Indian salutes Col Christopher Rego for his untiring efforts and leadership. His efforts are already having a cascading effect on people from across India joining the “White Bullets” endeavour. Quite amazingly, education, in itself so empowering, is merely a means to PEACE. We hope the path illuminated by #Luminary Col Rego and his Sunbird Trust team acts as a beacon for others to follow.

If you too have stories of change, share them with us. And if you want to connect with Colonel Rego, click here.